To Hell & Back

Album: Girl (2019)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This emotional ballad finds Maren Morris' lover giving her space to heal after she's been wounded by a previous relationship.

    My wings are frayed and what's left of my halo's black
    Lucky for me, your kind of heaven's been to Hell and back


    The singer's man still loves her even though she's damaged goods. "It's just a beautiful, melancholy kind of song," Morris told Radio.com's Katie Neal. "I like love songs that feel real and they're not pining after a boy, or wanting them to notice you or think you're cute at the party and they pick you. I wanted it to be a meatier love song than what I'm used to hearing. So, I tried to just go by the book of my relationship."
  • Morris first began dating fellow country singer Ryan Hurd in January 2015 and married him just over three years later (they split in 2023). Morris has said in interviews that being happily married opened up new avenues for her songwriting for Girl and that this song came from her own personal experience.

    Morris previously sang about a relationship with an unreliable guy on the 2016 track "Rich." Was this the ex who caused her to be in such a bad place when she started her romance with Hurd? Interestingly, Morris co-wrote both "Rich" and "To Hell & Back" alongside Jessie Jo Dillion and Laura Veltz.
  • Maren Morris performed the song from the historic Ryman Auditorium during the 2020 ACM Awards on September 16, 2020. Clad in a red floral dress, Morris played an acoustic guitar while backed by her band. She won Female Artist of the Year at the ceremony.
  • Maren Morris wrote the song very early in her relationship with Ryan Hurd, before they were properly dating. "It's an older song of mine," she told ABC Audio, "but I held on to it for years because I just loved it so much. And I loved the sentiment behind, you know, someone loving you because of your flaws, not despite them."
  • Morris explained the song describes the definitive relationship between two lovers. "You have to accept the whole picture to really love someone, and not ignore certain parts," she explained. "I don't think you can fully love a person if you're, like, sweeping some things under the rug."

    "So I was just wanting to write a song that thanked him for loving every good, bad and ugly thing about me," Morris added, laughing.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in Rock

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in RockSong Writing

We ring the Hell's Bells to see what songs and rockers are sincere in their Satanism, and how much of it is an act.

Julian Lennon

Julian LennonSongwriter Interviews

Julian tells the stories behind his hits "Valotte" and "Too Late for Goodbyes," and fills us in on his many non-musical pursuits. Also: what MTV meant to his career.

Leslie West of Mountain

Leslie West of MountainSongwriter Interviews

From the cowbell on "Mississippi Queen" to recording with The Who when they got the wrong Felix, stories from one of rock's master craftsmen.

Country Song Titles

Country Song TitlesFact or Fiction

Country songs with titles so bizarre they can't possibly be real... or can they?

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.

The Girl in That Song

The Girl in That SongFact or Fiction

Billie Jean, Delilah, Sara, Laura and Sharona - do you know who the girls in the songs really are?